De Valera was the Irish equivalent of Korean dictator Kim Yung Il

Watching the North Korean news announcer weeping as she revealed the death of Dear Leader Kim Yong- Il in North Korea reminded me of the crocodile tears we shed in Ireland many years ago after the death of Eamon De Valera.

Like Kim, De Valera was our dear leader, a mythical figure when I was growing up in Ireland.

Like Kim he had his own brass band in the media which trumpeted everything he did from opening schools to meeting with minor world leaders.

Like Kim many of his people were suffering, the emigrant boats were full, many left behind barely surviving. But the cult continued and grew.----------------Read more: More Irish politics news on Irish Central